Carl’s Promise
by justsomeweirdo0517
Summary: This is part of my what if Walking Dead story where Carl never gets bit by the walker and lives on. Rick still gets caught in the explosion but Carl had to make a promise to Michonne to take care of Judith and RJ while she goes out to find Rick.
1. Carl’s Promise

**A/N: Ok, so I know I'm not even CLOSE to this part in my walking dead fanfic but I wanted to make a little thing of Carl making a promise to Michonne after she gives birth to RJ (Rick Jr.) to take care of his siblings while she goes and find Rick. **

It was late at night and Michonne was pacing around the living room. She had gotten a call from Morgan nine months ago on the walkie-talkie...

* * *

_Flashback to 9 months ago..._

_Michonne, like many others were, was still upset about her husbands death. But no one was grieving as much as Carl Grimes was. He'd already lost his mother while giving birth to Judith, and now his father while Michonne was pregnant. Michonne had to be brave, for Carl, for Judith, and for Rick. She was about to go check on Carl when all of a sudden, she heard a voice coming from her walkie talkie,_

_**"Michonne?"**_

_It was Morgan!_

_"Morgan..? Is that you?" _

_**"I have some news for you... After you called me about Rick's death... I saw a helicopter fly by..."**_

**(A/N: yes, this a reference from fear the dead.)**

_"What does a helicopter have to do with all this?" she questioned,_

_**"Michonne... Rick might be alive..."**_

* * *

But, why is she leaving now? Why didn't she do anything sooner? The answer was because she was pregnant during the time. She wanted to leave sooner, but she didn't want to put her baby at risk. She was anxious about Rick. What if he wasn't dead? Morgan saw the helicopter take him away but, the question was, was he alright? Was he alive? She didn't know. All she knew was that there was a chance he could be. She needed to know, she needed to make sure he was alright. She took out a pencil and a paper and wrote,

_Dear Carl,_

_I'm so sorry but I have to go find your father. I don't know how long I'll be gone, days, weeks, months, maybe even years, but I promise you I will return with your father one day. Please don't come after me, I need you to take care of RJ and Judith for me. I can find Rick on my own. I'm so sorry._

_Michonne._

Michonne put the pencil down and started to walk out the door but heard a familiar voice,

"Where are you going?" it was Carl,

"What are you doing up?" she asked him,

"Couldn't sleep." was his answer, "Now answer my question."

Michonne just sighed, "Look, " she started, "I have to leave."

That caught Carl's attention, "What do you mean?" he asked, "You're just gonna leave us?!"

"Listen, Carl, you don't understand, " she tried to explain to him,

"You can't just leave! What me?! What about Judith and RJ?!"

"That's all on you now."

"I just lost my dad! I can't lose you too!"

"AND THAT'S WHY I'M LEAVING!" Michonne finally snapped, "I got a call from Morgan on the walkie-talkie. He told me your father was taken away in a helicopter, I need to see if he's alright and I'm not coming back without him."

That's when Carl finally understood. Michonne didn't want to do this, but she had to leave, to find his father. "I'm going with you." He offered,

"No!" Michonne said, "I need you to stay here, to take care of Alexandria, to take care of Judith and RJ."

"Wait, you want me to take over?!" Carl questioned, "I can't take over by myself!"

"Yes you can," she said, "You're a very smart boy, Carl. You're brave, strong, and independent. You can do it just please... don't just do this for me, do this for Rick... for Judith and RJ,"

With that, Carl sighed, "Fine, I'll try my best." He said.

"Thank you." She said, but before she left, she felt a hand reach her shoulder,

"Just promise me something," Carl let out, Michonne turned around and faced him, "Promise me you'll return, with dad or not? Please... I can't handle losing you too."

Michonne smiled, "You have my word," she said and hugged Carl who started crying. With that, she started to cry too.

After a few minutes of crying, Michonne broke up the hug, "It's time for me to go now," she said, "Promise me you'll take care of our people?"

Carl nodded, "I promise." and with that, Michonne left on her adventure to find Rick Grimes.

* * *

**_Nine Months Later..._**

It has been nine months since Michonne left, and she hasn't come back. Carl sighed, _'they're probably dead now...' _he thought to himself, he took off his hat and stared at it,

"I hope you're still alive, somewhere..." he said and thought of an idea, he went into Judith's room to talk to her, "Hey, Judith." He said with a smile on his face,

"Carl!" She said, all happily,

"I wanted to give you something," he told her and took off his hat again, "This was dad's before it was mine, and now it's yours." He placed his hat on top of Judith's head but it was too big, "Don't worry," he chuckled, "You'll grow into it, I promise..."

_I promise..._


	2. Enid Moves In!

**A/N: I wanted to make the second part of this of where Enid leaves Hilltop and moves to Alexandria to help out Carl. Hope you guys like it!**

* * *

Carl was walking down the road with Enid, he was stressing out about everything. How would he be able to rule Alexandra by himself? With his father gone and Michonne leaving, he had to take over for his family. But the problem was, he was a teenager, how would you expect a teenager to take over by himself?

Enid had noticed this herself. Carl had been stressing himself for the past nine months since Michonne left. He hasn't been eating or sleeping properly since then. She had also noticed something else that was off. He wasn't wearing his hat!

"Hey Carl, where's your hat?" she asked in curiosity,

"Oh, I gave it to Judith." he told her.

"Why?" she asked,

"I thought... maybe it could help her." he said, "Wearing that hat, it kept dad with me, it made me feel as strong as him," he admitted, "It helped me, so I thought maybe it could help her too."

Enid smiled at him. She thought it was really sweet of Carl to do that. Carl then sighed.

"Hey, Carl is everything alright?" Enid asked him,

"Yeah, I'm fine, " Carl lied to his girlfriend, "Just... tired."

Enid wasn't gonna fall for that so easily, she's been dating Carl long enough to know if he was upset about something or not,

"Carl, don't lie to me." she said, "Tell me what's going on."

Carl looked down to the ground, "It's just..." he started, "I can't take over for my father!" he finally said.

"What do you mean?" she asked, "You've been doing such a good job!"

"Because," he started, "I've been stressing out about it so much. I miss my dad and I miss Michonne. I just want everything back to normal..."

Enid looked at him, she felt really bad for him. He hasn't been eating much since that all happened. He's also sacrificing his sleep to help out his people. She wished she could help him out somehow. She then thought of an idea.

"Hey, if you want I could move to Alexandria and help you out." she offered to her boyfriend.

Carl looked at her, he couldn't let her do that for him, it was his responsibility, not hers, right?

"No, " he said, "I can't let you do that!"

"Why not?" she asked, "You've been so stressed since then, just let me help you!"

"NO!" Carl snapped, "I promised to take over for my father and I can't let you stress out because of me."

"Carl, you can't do this alone." she said, "You said so yourself!"

"You shouldn't have to make that sacrifice for me!" he said, "I can do it!"

"I know you can, and I understand!" Enid said, "But you need help, Carl. You haven't eaten properly or slept well since then. Just please, let me help!" she pleaded.

Carl looked at her once again, "You would really do that for me?" he asked, Enid nodded,

"Of course I would!" she said, "Anything for you."

Carl didn't know what to say, he didn't know how to thank her for all of this, "Thank you." he finally said,

"Like I said, anything for you." she reminded him. Carl then started to move his hand towards her head, stroking her hair soothingly and kissed her forehead gently. Enid looked at him and kissed him back, lips interacting with one another. After a few seconds of kissing, Enid spoke up again, "I'll start packing and meet up with you tomorrow at Alexandria, ok?"

Carl nodded, "I'll see you then." he said, waving goodbye and started to walk back to Alexandria.

* * *

**The next day Back at Hilltop**

Enid woke up and started to pack up the rest of her things. When she finished packing, she was about to head out the door when she heard a familiar voice,

"Where are you going?" It was Maggie,

"Alexandria, " she told her, "Why?"

"Just asking." Maggie responded, "Why do you have a bunch of stuff with you?"

"I'm leaving." Enid told her,

"What do you mean you're leaving?" Maggie asked confused,

"I'm moving to Alexandria." Enid told her, "I'm helping out Carl with ruling over Alexandria, he's been so stressed out since then and he needs help."

Maggie nodded, everyone knew how stressed out Carl has been since Rick caught in the explosion and Michonne leaving to go find him.

"Go." Maggie demand, happy that Enid was doing what she thought best, "He needs your help."

"I'll try my best." she said and hugged Maggie who embraced the hug. With that, Enid left Hilltop and headed off to her new home, Alexandria.

* * *

**Meanwhile at Alexandria**

Carl was in the kitchen, making breakfast for his younger siblings Judith and RJ when all of a sudden, he heard a knock on the door,

**Knock, Knock**

Carl opened the door to see who it was, it was Enid.

"Hey." he said, "I didn't expect for you to come here this early."

"Well, I thought I'd just surprise you." she said, "What are you doing?" she then asked,

"Making breakfast." he told her,

"I'll make breakfast for you!" she offered,

"No," he said, "You don't have to do that for me."

Enid walked inside and shut the door behind her before responding, "You haven't eaten or slept well for nine months so you better go back to bed right now or I'll force you to!" she said jokingly but also seriously.

Carl just sighed, rolling his eyes at her but with a smile on his face, "Alright, fine." he said, and with that, Carl started to walk upstairs to his room,

"I'll wake you up when breakfast is done!" Enid yelled loud enough for Carl to hear her and started to make breakfast.

When Carl was walking upstairs, he saw Judith run up to him,

"Carl!" she cried, all happily, running into his arms, Carl picked her up and hugged her,

"Hey, Judy." he said smiling, "I'm going to go take a nap now, but Enid will make you and RJ breakfast, ok?"

"Ok!" Judith said as Carl put her down and walked into his room to take his nap. Carl laid down on the bed and started to think to himself about stuff,

'Judith, RJ, Enid, I promise I will protect you guys with my life'

_I promise..._


	3. Advice from Negan

**A/N: This was a suggested idea. Hope y'all enjoy!**

* * *

It has now been ten months since Michonne had left and one month since Enid moved in with Carl to help out Alexandria. Carl wasn't as stressed as he used to be now that he's getting help, but there was still one problem. He didn't know if what he was doing was right. He needed some more help. So he decided to go to someone.

Negan.

You might be wondering, why Negan out of all people? Well, Negan was the leader of a group once before so it wouldn't hurt to try, right?

"WAHHH!"

Oh no, RJ was crying again. He was about to check on him to see why he was crying until he saw his girlfriend, Enid.

"I'll take care of him." She said, "You can go do whatever you were gonna do."

Carl just nodded, "Ok." He said. He couldn't argue with Enid anymore, if she was willing to do something, then she was going to do it. Even if it wasn't her responsibility. Carl got dressed, took off the bandage for his eye and put an eye patch over it. He then walked out the door and headed off to the jail cell Negan was in and sat down on the steps outside.

"Hey." He spoke up,

"Well, what brings you here today Carl?" Negan asked,

"Listen, I was wondering if you could help me out with some stuff." Carl confessed, honestly.

"Help? From me?" Negan questioned, "Out of all people, you came to me for advice?"

"Yes." Carl replied, "About leading Alexandria. You use to be the leader of your community, so I was wondering if you could give me some advice."

"Oh, so you're STILL fussing about that bullshit, even after your girlfriend moved in to help you out." Negan joked,

"I'm being serious!" Carl lashed out at him, "Look, I'm getting help now but I don't know if what I'm doing is right..."

"It's not an easy job I'll tell you that." Negan started, "Being a leader means you put your people before yourself. You make sure your people are safe and healthy."

"Ok... anything else? I've been doing that for the past nine months." Carl informed him,

"Yes, I have some more advice up my sleeve, and this is very important," Negan said, "You can't just let your health drop down for your people. You need to take care of yourself as well."

Carl was stunned that Negan even knew about this, he never told him anything about this till now.

"How did you even know about that?"

"I heard you and Enid talking about it." He acknowledged, "Listen, I understand you wanna keep your people safe, especially Judith and RJ, but you gotta take care of yourself too you know. If you end up dying then who else is gonna take over? Your girlfriend would get super depressed, Judith is only like five-years-old now, right?"

Carl nodded, "R.J. is only a baby, your family and people need you, Carl, promise you won't make any unnecessary decisions or sacrifices?"

Carl never thought of all this, all he wanted was to keep his people safe, and his health was weakening in the process!

"I promise..." he sais, "Now I feel stupid for not thinking about this sooner, I can't put them through that, not after what happened with my dad, or Michonne…"

"Hey, look, I know I'm not the kindest person, but I do care more then you think I do." he confessed, "You don't have to believe me now, but keep in mind that this was your idea to not kill me and you're the one who was the first believe that I could be a good guy." he recalled,

"I know." Carl stood up, "And trust me when I say this, I believe you can be better, you've changed a bit these pastten months."

"I'm trying." Negan admitted,

"Thanks for helping me out." Carl said, "I'll come back down in a few hours to bring you lunch."

"Ok, make sure you eat too." Negan reminded him,

"I will, don't worry." Carl said and went back into his house.

Negan just sat there in his cell, thinking about what just happened, _'This kid may be a badass, but damn he has a big heart.' _he thought to himself about Carl.

* * *

Enid was holding RJ in her arms, rocking him back and forth until she saw Carl walk back inside,

"That was fast." She said, amazed that Carl was back so soon,

"I wasn't really doing much," he admitted, "Just talking to Negan."

"Oh." was her reply,

"Hey, where's Judith?"

"In her room," she replied,

"Oh, well in that case-!" he was then interrupted by a familiar voice,

"Carl's back!" It was Judith, running down the stairs until Carl stopped her,

"Judith, what did I say about running up and down the stairs?" He asked,

"Not to do it..." she answered.

"Don't do it again," he said in a firm voice, "You could get hurt by doing that and I don't want that to happen."

"Ok..." Judith replied.

"Good," He said, "Now go play with Enid, R.J. needs to take his nap."

"Come on Judith," Enid called to her while giving R.J. to Carl, "We can go play in your room."

"Ok!" Judith cheered, taking Enid's hand, shuffling upstairs.

Carl brought R.J. up to his room and put him in his crib so he could go to sleep. After that, he went to his room and started thinking to himself, _'Negan, I promise you I'll take your advice and take better care of myself.' _

_I promise..._

* * *

**A/N: Hope you guys liked this chapter! Let me know if you want more of this story!**


	4. AN: Somethings I wanna talk about

**Hey guys! I just wanted to talk to you guys about a few stuff. If you are following this story, I'd recommend you also read my other fanfic, "What if." It's not finished but it will talk about how Carl lived in my story and some other stuff. The other thing I wanted to say was if you have any ideas for Carl's Promise let me know, I'm planning on doing only two or three more chapters for it. I'm not gonna do anything after the time jump only because that gonna be for my "What if." Story. So comment down below some more ideas for this story and I will try to update my "What If" fanfic too as soon as I can! Bye!!**


	5. Finally Getting the Help You Need

**A/N: This was another suggested idea. Hope you guys like it!**

* * *

It has been a week since Carl's talked to Negan and he has been doing a lot better since then. He still wouldn't eat or sleep occasionally but only if it was really necessary. He still had Enid to help him out which was a plus. But that wasn't enough him. Well, at least in Daryl's opinion. He remembered everything that has happened as if it was only yesterday...

* * *

_**Flashback to ten months ago...**_

_It was early in the morning, everything was normal except for one thing, Michonne had gone missing! Everyone has been asking each other many questions if they knew anything about her, they've all been asking Carl many questions too, it wasn't until Carl got up onto a ladder and climbed it to the place where Rick and Michonne would usually go on to see who was at the gates, Carl then spoke up so everyone could hear him,_

_"Can I have everyone's attention, please?" everyone then stopped talking and looked up at Carl, "Look, I know you all have many questions about what's going on but, I'm here to explain about it. One thing I want to get out of the way. Michonne left, and she's not coming back for a long time." everyone was confused and nervous about the shocking news, "Don't worry, she's not dead, that's what I'm going to explain next." everyone sighed in relief, happy that she wasn't dead, "Michonne left because we found out something about my father, he's not dead, he was taken away in a helicopter, we don't know when they'll be back, but Michonne said she's gonna return someday wether it's with my dad or not." Carl told everyone. _

_That's when Daryl spoke up, __"Wait, if she's gonna be gone for a long time then who's gonna be ruling Alexandria?" he asked,_

_"Michonne and I talked about this, I'm gonna be leading until she returns." everyone was shocked that this was happening, why would Michonne leave a kid in charge of a whole community? "I know what you guys are thinking, but don't worry, I'll be fine I can do it, don't worry." _

_With that, everyone nodded, even though they didn't one-hundred percent agree with Carl taking over for his family at such a young age, especially Daryl Dixon..._

* * *

**End of flashback...**

Daryl was pissed off that Michonne left leaving Carl in charge. He understood that Michonne just wanted to find Rick so she could bring him home but it still wasn't right to leave Carl incharge by himself, he was just a kid! He knew Carl was a great leader in all but all the stress being put on a kid wasn't fair at all. Although, Enid maybe helping him out now but she was still a kid as well. Just imagine two teenagers taking care of two kids, not just that, a whole community by themselves! That's when Daryl had enough of it. Ten months had gone by and Carl was still struggling. Yes, he may have been doing better but it wasn't enough. That's when he came up with an idea. He had invited over Carl and Enid to a meeting to talk about all of this, maybe he could help them out, and maybe some of the others could too.

Daryl was lost in his mind about everything until he heard a familiar voice, "Hey Daryl." It was Carl, and he was with Enid.

"Hey, look, I wanna talk to you guys about a few things." He said,

"Why?" Enid asked, "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, everything's good." Daryl answered, "Just about you two leading Alexandria alone."

"What's wrong with it?" Carl asked,

"You two are just kids, you can't do this by yourselves." He told them, "Look, I know that Michonne left leaving you in charge Carl and you're getting the help you need but you really need to think about it. Two kids ruling over a community by themselves must not be easy now, is it?"

Carl just shook his head, "No, it's not." He admitted,

"It is really stressful." Enid added, "But we'll be fine-!"

"Bullshit." Daryl said, interrupting her, "You two can't do this on your own, you need others to help you out. Maybe you can hire others to be like second-commands and other stuff." He offered.

Enid liked the idea Daryl had, But Carl on the other hand did not agree with it. He was left in charge of Alexandria, he didn't want any co-leaders to do his job.

"I like that idea." Enid said, she then looked at Carl, "What do you think?" She asked him,

"No." Carl refused, "It's not your guys responsibility, it's mine."

Daryl and Enid looked at each other and then back at Carl,

"Just think about it Carl!" Enid suggested,

"Besides," Daryl added, "Imagine what your father would've wanted you to do if he left you in charge. He would've wanted you to get the help of you really needed it-!"

"DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE MENTION ANYTHING ABOUT MY FATHER!" Carl snapped at Daryl, he then sighed, he didn't mean to get so angry like that at him, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't of over reacted like that, I just really miss him." he apologized, "But you're right, he would've wanted me to get the help I need right now." he then admitted, "Michonne would too."

Daryl nodded, "I can always help you guys out if you need it." he offered. "How about tomorrow you guys can announcement that you're hiring new people for co-leaders, does that sound like a plan?

Enid nodded, "Sounds like a good plan." she agreed and then looked back at Carl, "What do you think?"

"That sounds good." he said, "We'll see you tomorrow, Daryl." he and Enid left while Daryl waved goodbye to them.

Right as they left, Daryl got back to thinking to himself, 'Carl, I really hope things work out for you and the kids. You're doing such a great job, kid.'

* * *

**Back at home with Enid and Carl...**

Carl and Enid had finally arrived back home, they had left Alden to watch the kids along with Aaron's daughter, Gracie.

"Thank you for watching them while we were out." Carl thanked Alden,

"Anytime," he said, picking up Gracie, "I'd better go drop Gracie off with Aaron, I'll see you guys tomorrow." with that, he and Gracie left,

"I'm not gonna lie, Alden's kinda cute." Enid joked, trying to make Carl jealous.

**(A/N: ((Spoiler Alert for the actual show)): Reference to season 9 when Enid got together with him after Carl died. Not gonna happen in my story, don't worry! XD)**

"Don't you dare go leaving me too." Carl teased, Enid punched his arm playfully and the two of them started laughing. They're laughing continued until they heard a little voice,

"Carl! Enid!" little Judith pleaded, trotting fastly over to them, happy to see them back home.

"Hey Judith." Carl greeted, picking her up, "What are you doing awake?" he then asked,

"Not sleepy," she answered and then began yawning,

"If you're not sleepy then why are you yawning silly?" Carl cooed. Judith kept yawning for a few more seconds and then drifted to sleep. "I'm gonna put her to bed." he told Enid. Enid nodded and walked upstairs to her and Carl's room. Carl went up to Judith's room and tucked her in bed. He left the room, walking by R.J's room to check on him, he was in his crib, sound asleep. He smiled at his baby brother, happy that he was asleep. (unlike little Judith) He then walked out of the room went into his room, he took off his clothes, put his pajamas on and got into his bed next to his girlfriend who he thought was asleep. His thoughts were swirling around his head about his father and Michonne.

Enid the looked at him, "Are you ok?" she asked, concerned about her boyfriend,

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine." he lied, "Just lost in thought, nothing else."

"Tell me the truth." she demanded, not letting Carl get away with lying to her,

Carl then sighed "It's just..." he started, "I just wish my dad was still here..." he finally answered, "Things would be so much easier, seeing the explosion happen in front of my eyes, it crushed me. Then Michonne left after she gave birth to R.J..."

Carl was about to continue talking until Enid interrupted him, "Wait quick question, how come Michonne didn't leave sooner when it happened? Did she not find out till then or what?" she asked,

"I'm pretty sure she knew sooner," he admitted, "I heard a lot of people talk about how Michonne was planning on leaving sooner when she found out but she found out she was pregnant with my dads baby." he told her, honestly, "I mean, it's totally understandable, I know she wouldn't want to leave while she was pregnant and have R.J. be in danger."

Enid nodded, "I understand." she said, "We should go to sleep, we have a lot of important things to do by tomorrow."

"Yeah, we should." he agreed, lying down, "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Carl," Enid responded, turning off the lights and went to sleep.

_'Dad, Michonne, I hope you're proud of me. I'm really trying as hard as I can.' _Carl thought to himself. He looked at Enid and saw she was asleep, he laid down next to her did the same thing.

* * *

**The next day...**

It was early in the morning, and Carl woke up, yawning and stretching his arms. He got out of bed, got dressed, brushed his teeth, and did his hair.

Enid woke up shortly after him, "Good morning, " she greeted,

"Morning." he responded, "You ready for today?" he then asked,

Enid nodded, "Yeah, are you?"

"Yeah," he said, not one-hundred percent sure about his response, "I think..."

"It's gonna be ok," Enid assured him, "You'll finally get more help."

"I know, I just hope it's enough." Carl admitted,

"It will be, trust me. Now come on, let's go!" Enid said, dragging Carl along with her. Carl just sighed and let his girlfriend drag him out of the house. They didn't have to worry about Judith and R.J. at the moment because it was too early for them to be waking up. Enid and Carl got outside, they got up onto a ladder and climbed it to the very top.

Carl helped Enid up before he got the chance to speak up, "Can I have everyone's attention please?" he called out. Everyone looked up at Carl and Enid, "Now, I know the past ten months have been difficult on us with Michonne leaving, but I want to talk to you guys about a few things, now about me being leader, I've come to realize that you guys were right, I can't do this on my own." Carl admitted.

"I may be helping him out but it's still stessful on me too." Enid spoke out to the crowd, "Carl and I talked to Daryl and made our final decision."

"We're still gonna lead but we need some help. Does anyone want to be a co-leader and help us out?" Carl asked, seeing if anyone wanted to help.

"I'll help out." Aaron volunteered,

"Ok, anyone else?" Enid asked, "We have a few more slots left."

"I will be glad to help you out." Siddiq spoke, "Carl's helped me out before, I will be glad to do the same for him."

"I'll help out too." Rosita said,

"Count me in as well." Father Gabriel stepped in, "You need all the help you can get."

"Ok, anyone else?" Carl asked, "Last call, we just need one more person." everyone was silent, "That's it-?"

Carl was then interrupted by Daryl, "I'll do it." he said, "Anything to help you guys out."

"Ok then." Enid said,

"Ok, thank you guys so much for the help, and a huge thanks to Daryl for the idea." Carl thanked his new co-workers, "We will have a meeting tomorrow just us and our new co-leaders to discuss about a few things."

"We hope everyone has a nice day and we just wanna thank you all again for the help." Enid added. She and Carl then climbed down the ladder and we're about to head back to their house until Carl felt someone touch his shoulder,

"Carl..." Carl turned around to see who it was, it was Daryl, "Promise me something, promise me you won't put so much stress on yourself like that again? You know Michonne and your father wouldn't want you doing that to yourself if they were here."

Carl nodded, "I promise." he said, Enid stood there, waiting for him, the two of them headed back to their house while everyone else continued to do what they were doing earlier. "I'm glad we're getting help now." Carl admitted,

"Says the one who wanted no help yesterday." Enid teased.

"Oh, shut up." Carl joked, rolling his eyes playfully at her. "Ok, for real though, " Carl said, seriously, "I'm actually glad that we're getting help."

"Yeah, me too." Enid admitted, "It's nice to get more help."

"Yeah, " he agreed, "I'm gonna make breakfast-!"

"I'll make breakfast." she offered, not caring that she interrupted Carl, "You can go rest."

"Ok," Carl said, walking upstairs to his room so Enid could make breakfast. He opened the door to Judith's room to check on her, was still asleep. Carl smiled softly and closed the door quietly, not wanting to wake up his little sister. He then opened the door to R.J.'s room to check up on him too, he was asleep, just like Judith. Carl again closed the door quietly so he wouldn't wake up his baby brother. He then walked into his room and started thinking to himself. _'Dad, Michonne, Daryl, I promise you guys I won't put too much stress on myself with leading Alexandria ever again.'_

_I promise..._

* * *

**A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed it! I'm only gonna do one more chapter for this so let me know if you've got any ideas for the last chapter (not anything to do with the time skip cause that will be in my "What if." story.) See ya! **


	6. NOT AN UPDATE!

**Hey guys! I know I haven't been updating much and I apologize for that. But, I found a song on YouTube and it made me think of my AU, since Carl's alive and doesn't know his fathers alive, this would be him talking about his dad. The song is called, "Dad's Song." by Set it Off. It's a sad but very sweet song and I imagine Carl singing it to his father because of my au, (I would put a link to the song here but it won't let me so if you want to listen to it, I'd recommend you look the song up on YouTube) but Anyways, yes, I'm still working on this**** story, it might take awhile though, so sorry for the long wait guys! I'll try to get to updating as soon as I can!**


	7. The Final: Part 1

**A/N: Ok, this is for the final, I'm TWO suggested ideas from two different people but they're gonna be both in different parts and I'm also adding some little twists in it so yeah, I hope you guys like it! **

* * *

It has currently been almost a year since Michonne had left Alexandria (11 months) and she still has yet to return, but presently, three weeks have gone by since Carl and Enid have hired their co-workers for Alexandria and they've been accomplishing much better since then. Carl had finally got his spirit back up and Enid made sure it stayed that way.

It was late in the afternoon, Carl was preparing lunch for his girlfriend, Enid, and his siblings, Judith and R.J. He was setting up the table when all of a sudden, Enid had come up with an idea,

"Hey, Carl," she let out, winning her boyfriend's attention, "When was the last time you've met up with the others? You know, like Maggie, Carol, and Ezekiel?"

Carl simply sighed, "I haven't seen any of them since Michonne left..." he informed her, honestly,

"I know, but how come?" she asked,

"Ever since then I've just been too scared to let new people in or to leave Judith and R.J. behind."

"You still came to visit me," she recalled,

"More like you came to visit me."

He was right, he never actually left Alexandria since Michonne left, (unless it was for particular reasons) but Enid would usually come to stop by at Alexandria because of this.

"You're right, but it wouldn't hurt to drop by and see them again. I miss how things used to be."

"Back when my dad and Michonne we're still here?" he asked,

"Yeah,"

"And when we didn't have to worry about everything, I miss all that," he admitted,

"Same here, we should meet up with all of them soon, you know, just to tell them how things are going and stuff."

"Good idea." he agreed, "I do miss them."

"Maybe Daryl could come with us too,"

"Yeah, good idea, but when?" she questioned,

"We can try and meet up with them tomorrow, " he implied, "Does that sound good?"

Enid nodded, "Yeah, that works out."

"Ok, I should get Judith and R.J. for lunch." Carl decided, he went upstairs and opened the door to R.J's room, went over to his crib and picked him up, "Hey there little buddy, are you hungry? Because lunch is ready for you." with that, little R.J. smiled and started to giggle, he still has not learned to speak yet, but he's getting there,

"Carl?" a voice piped up, Carl turned around, he knew that little voice from anywhere, it was Judith.

"Hey Judy."

"I'm hungry, when are we gonna have lunch?" she asked her brother,

"Lunch is ready right now." he answered, "Come on, let's go and eat." with that, the two of them walked downstairs with little R.J. in Carl's arms.

"What's for lunch?" Judith asked her older brother's girlfriend,

"We're having a salad with tomatoes, onions, and olives." she responded with a smile. Carl settled R.J. down in his high chair and then sat down at the table.

Judith had gotten a fork and knife and was about to start cutting her salad until Carl stopped her, "Uh, uh, uh. What have we said about knifes?"

"Only let the adults use them," she answered, handing Carl the knife, he then chopped up her salad.

Enid smiled at Carl and his sister, it was funny how overprotective he's gotten with her and R.J. since Michonne left. Well, there were moments when Carl would take his overprotection a little too far, but Enid would make sure it didn't get out of hand. Carl finished cutting up his sister's salad and sat down. The four of them started to eat the delicious salad that was made. When they finished, they heard a knock on the door,

**Knock knock,**

"Come in!" Carl responded, with that, the door opened wide, showing a familiar face, it was Daryl,

"Uncle Daryl!" Judith called out with enthusiasm,

"What brings you here?" Carl questioned,

"Thought I'd stop by to surprise you." he responded, "Come in, we're meeting up with Maggie at Hilltop."

"But what about-?"

"Bring the kids with you, I don't give a shit," he answered, not letting Carl finish his question,

"Uncle Daryl said a bad word!" Judith cried out,

"Well, then it looks like Uncle Daryl will need to be put in time out for that." Carl said, jokingly,

Daryl rolled his eyes, "Let's just go."

"Okay then." Enid responded, picking up R.J.

"Carl, can you give me a piggyback ride up to Auntie Maggie's?" Judith pleaded her brother,

"Sure, why not." he replied, kneeling down so his sister could get on his back, wrapping her arms around his neck, Carl wrapped his arms around her legs, he then stood up.

"Alright, now hurry up guys, we don't have all day." Daryl complained, impatiently. With that, the five of them headed out the door, taking off to Hilltop.

* * *

**At Hilltop...**

It was a normal day at Hilltop, Maggie was with her son, Hershel. She was in a very good mood today because she finally got to meet up with her old allies for the first time in months. Carol, Ezekiel, Gabriel, Rosita, Siddiq, Tara, Eugene, and Jesus were all there. She was now only waiting for Carl, Enid, and Daryl to arrive.

"Look who finally came." Jesus announced, pointing to five familiar faces,

"Hey guys, it's been a while, huh?" Carl spoke out,

"Yeah." Jesus agreed, "It was been."

"How have you guys been?" Maggie asked,

"Much better than before." Enid told her, honestly,

"That's good." Eugene said,

"Well, I'm glad to finally see you guys again." Carol admitted,

"Let's go inside, " Maggie suggested, the others nodded in agreement, following her into her home. When they got inside, Carl got Judith off of his back and sat down on the sofa, placing her down on his lap, the others all sat down on Maggie's sofa in the living room as well.

"So, let's catch up on a few things, " Maggie suggested, "What's been going on with everyone?"

"A lot." Carl confessed, "But I wanna hear what you guys have been doing before I share."

"I've got good news to share." Carol started, "I'm getting married."

"Seriously?" Tara asked, Carol, nodded her head,

"Well, congrats." Daryl applauded,

Jesus raised a question, "So, when's the wedding?"

"Soon." Ezekiel confirmed, "We also have a son now."

"Wait, since when?" Rosita asked, shocked about the news,

"About a month ago." he told them,

"I don't remember you being pregnant." Judith said,

"Judith, I don't think that's a polite thing to say." Carl told her,

"No no, it's okay." Carol said while chuckling, "We adopted Henry, that's what we meant."

"Oh." was everyone else's reply, except for Ezekiel. (obviously)

"How have thing's been for you?" Gabriel asked Maggie, "I haven't heard from you in a while,

"I've been good, so had Hershel. But it hasn't been the same since Enid left."

"Wow, I really did miss this place more than I thought." Enid confessed,

"I miss having you around, " Maggie agreed, "And so does Hershel Jr." Enid smiled, she wanted to move back in with them, she really did, but the question was, how would Carl react? Doesn't he still need her help? Maggie and Hershel were apart of her family, and so was Carl, what should she choose? To stay with her boyfriend, or to move back with her adoptive-mother and brother? **(A/N ((spoiler warning)): If you're confused with why I said "Adoptive-mother and brother." is because of, 1: It was confirmed that Enid is Sophia's replacement from the comics and Maggie and Glenn adopted Sophia in the comics, I don't know if they adopted Enid but I do know she looked up to Maggie and Glenn as parental figures so I'm gonna have her be adopted by Maggie for a comic reference. Lol!) **"You can always come back if you'd like." she offered,

Enid looked at Carl, "It's okay if you want to move back." he told her, "I completely understand and won't be hurt."

"But… what about you…? Don't you still need help with Alexandria?"

"He'll be fine." Daryl assured, "I'll keep an eye on him. Plus, he's got other co-workers that will help him out."

"Do what you think is right." Gabriel told her.

Enid sighed, "I wanna move back home, I really do, but…" she looked back at Carl, "I don't wanna leave you in the condition you're in."

"Hey, it's okay. I'm doing better now, and besides, you can always come and visit me, and I can always come here to visit you. You've helped me so much, I don't know what I'd do if you never helped me out."

"What about Judith and R.J.?"

"I'll be fine, I can have 'Uncle Daryl.' babysit them anytime."

"Are you sure you'll be okay without me?"

"I'm sure." he assured, "Again, we can always visit each other whenever we want."

"Okay, I'll just have half my stuff at Maggie's and leave the other half at Carl's. I can go back and forth from both places."

"That's gonna be a lot."

"Not really." she said, "I'll mostly be at Hilltop, because that's my _real_ home. But please, promise me you won't go back to how you used to be when I move back."

"I promise."

"I'll keep an eye on him, like I said, don't worry." Daryl repeated,

_"I'm so proud of you Carl." _Carl heard his fathers voice in his head,

"Dad?" he mumbled,

"Is everything okay?" Maggie asked, concerned,

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"If you say so."

"We should be heading back home now." Daryl said,

"I need to get my stuff from Carl's place." Enid remembered, she then looked back at Maggie "I'll come home tomorrow." and with that, everyone said their goodbyes and went back home.

* * *

**Back at Alexandria…**

Carl and Enid had finally arrived home with Judith and R.J., Carl put his siblings to bed and went to go check on Enid who was packing some of her stuff in a suitcase, Carl then started to help her out,

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Enid asked once again,

"Don't worry about me."

"I'm your girlfriend, I'm supposed to worry."

"I know." Carl said, "I'll be okay, seriously."

"Okay, " Enid finished packing her stuff, "I'm gonna go to bed now, I'll see you in the morning, " and with that, Enid went upstairs, got into her pajamas, and drifted to sleep.

Carl went upstairs and laid down next to Enid, he was still wide awake though, he kept hearing voices in his head, his father, Michonne, his mother, and even Glenn!

_"You're doing a great job." _Michonne's voice said, _"We're all very proud of you." _

"Thank's Michonne." he replied to the voice, "I'm trying my best."

_"That's my boy." _he heard Lori's voice as well, _"I still mean it when I say 'you're gonna beat this world!' "_

"I love you, mom..."

_"Keep up the good work." _Glenn's voice told him,

"I will, Glenn."

_"Carl, look at you. You're all grown up. You've accomplished so much. I'm so proud of you." _

Carl started to tear up, "I love you, dad."

_"I love you too, Carl." _with that, the voices faded away,

Carl looked at his girlfriend who was sound asleep, _"Enid, I promise you I'll be okay and I won't stress myself out again when you go back home…"_

_I promise…_

* * *

**A/N: Here's part 1 for the final! I'm so sorry for the long wait guys! And I know I said I was only doing one more chapter but I cut it short because I feel like it would be better to do the final in two parts mainly because 1: I'm doing a time skip (only a couple months) and 2: It just felt right to do the final in two parts when I was writing it. Also, I know Enid moving back to Hilltop must be shocking for you guys but do not worry! Nothing will affect her and Carl's relationship! The next part shouldn't take as long but I promise I will finish this! See you guys in the next part of the final! :) **


	8. Not an update-about “what if”

**Hey guys! I'm deleting "What If" and NO IT'S NOT CANCELLED OR ANYTHING! I'm deleting the story and re-uploading it doing it in seasons. Example: Season 7 will be its own story and so will Season 8. So I'm doing all seasons as different stories only because it's confusing with the huge jump between season 7 and 8 in the story I did so I will say this, season 8 of "What if" is FINISHED. I know I didn't do the first half of season 8 but that was kinda my purpose to do that so I'll upload what I have (which you've all already seen) and I'm gonna try and work on season 7 after I finish Carl's Promise. So "What if" will be gone but after this, I'll upload "What If: Season 7" and "What if: Season 8" as two different stories. Season 7 is not complete as it only has one chapter so far and I already addressed this, season 8 is complete, I just need to upload it, and I'm telling you guys on here because I know most of you read "What If" so that's why it will be gone and in different parts so ya, hope you understand, and the REAL FINAL for Carl's promise will hopefully be out soon! **


	9. Not an update! (04-02 15:31:43)

**Hey guys, I know the next chapter is coming out slower than you hoped, I'm sorry about that! But I updated chapter one of this story because I kinda realized it didn't make sense why Michonne didn't leave sooner and how she even found out Rick was alive, so I updated that and changed a few things so hopefully, things make more sense. Also, don't worry, I'm still working on the next chapter this story. Stay tuned until then! :)**


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